Local Natives @ The Empyrean in Spokane!!!

Actually, contra Keegan's post directly below, I haven't JUST been couchsurfing of late. I might have just gotten the last two tickets to the very first sold out show at what is quickly becoming one of my favorite venues, The Empyrean, in my hometown of Spokane, WA. From my vantage point in the VIP balcony (yeah, the one for players like me who know both the owners), I get to sneak through a secret door (which I call "Narnia") from a DIFFERENT, LESS COOL balcony and basically sit directly over the stage...which is exponentially more awesome when I bring my camera...

...AND IT'S EVEN MORE AWESOME WHEN THE FUCKING LOCAL NATIVES DEFY REASON AND PLAY SPOKANE!!! That's right fuckerz, for this week, I'm cooler than ya'll, because I got to see the L.A. indie folk upstarts play in my own backyard...and I sat close enough to touch the head of the bass player (I didn't touch him. Things might have gotten weird between us. I feel like we had a connection when we locked eyes before their set.) Anyway, here's some pics. Enjoy!

The show rocked, btw. I didn't have the money on me to snag their record on vinyl...but seeing as they're playing Sasquatch this weekend, I think I just might be able to swing that shizzit. In the meantime, if you haven't gotten into this band, fuck you, here are links:

Local Natives - OS|MS

Sorry Y'all!

Yo, the cheetah's had a tough couple weeks, what with Jon graduating and Tim couchsurfing and being internetless and sucking at Starcraft, and with my loss of an ipod, then a laptop and then a bad experience with liquid nitrogen.

Anyways, the cheetah will be better in the future! We promise!

Have a great summer!

Heres to the Greyhound!

Kele Releases New Tracks!

Holy fucking shit motherfuckers - Kele Okereke, lead singer from Bloc Party has finally released new tracks from his upcoming album Boxer - and its some of the best material I've heard since Bloc Party released the collections of B-Sides unofficially entitled Another Weekend in the City. The music is clear, unhinged, beautiful, and at times, a little bit banger. Maybe the band needed a split to express themselves musically - a sad day for all of us Bloc Party fans, but a good thing ultimately. Who knows, maybe Pin Me Down, Russell Lissack's side project Pin Me Down's first album is awesome as well. Ill give it a listen and post about it later today.

Check out this Tron-esque video for the club sounding track Tenderoni!

Kele Okereke - OS|MS

Rise by Kele Okereke

Walk Tall by Kele Okereke

Kele Okereke - Tenderoni (Larry Tee and Beckwith Remix)

Phantogram Remix?

A remix of Phantogram? Strange. A remix of Phantogram that turns it into a sunny, blissed out summer tune? Very strange. I'm not sure whether this song is actually any good or just super weird, but it seems significant, and I suppose it shows the power of the remix (???).

Anyways, i say give it a listen. I guarantee you've spent three minutes a worse way.

Phantogram - MS|OS

Phantogram - Mouthful Of Diamonds (Alan Wilkis Remix)

Anoraak!!!

Hey y'all! Remember Anoraak! The Cheetah does! This titan of the French 80's revival scene, who blew it up a few years back with the amazing "Nightdrive With You" is back with a track entitled "Above Your Head." And it is definitely pretty baller! So check it out. Cheetah commands it!

Anoraak - MS|OS

Anoraak - Above Your Send

Passion Pit Remixes Tokyo Police Club!

I've always liked the very Canadian Tokyo Police Club. From the short but excellent tracks that defined their first album to the fairly banger remixes that emerged from their more recent tracks, it's all seemed good to me. Theyve been relesing some new material in preperation for the release of their third album, Champ, and Passion Pit was awesome enough to remix "Wait Up (Boots of Danger), in typical awesome Passion Pit fashion. Its a bit slow in the first half, but it heats up and its still awesome. Hooray for awesomeness!

And check out the video for Breakneck Speed - definitely a different feel than their previous work, but super good!

Tokyo Police Club - Breakneck Speed

TOKYO POLICE CLUB | MySpace Music Videos

Tokyo Police Club - MS|OS

Passion Pit - MS|OS

Tokyo Police Club - Breakneck Speed

Tokyo Police Club - Wait Up (Boots of Danger)

Tokyo Police Club - Wait Up (Boots of Danger) (Passion Pit Remix)

LOL Nu-Rave: Klaxons release new song

Hey guys remember Nu-Rave!

HAHAHAHA!

Anyways the Klaxons are back. Its been three long years since NME embarrassed the electro/indie world by inventing the term Nu-Rave and tacking it onto the Klaxons and everything else with guitars and neon colors (thanks a billion NME). Apparantly the Klaxons tried to pull a MGMT with their second album and go all experimental, but their label wouldnt let them get away with it and shelved the album.

So anyways, their back, with a very familar sounding tune entitled "Flashover." Its aight.

Flashover by klaxons

The Klaxons - MS|OS

New Arcade Fire Songs

Arcade Fire just dropped a new single! Does that mean a new album could be impending? The Cheetah says - Probably! The first, "The Suburbs" is pretty classic Arcade Fire, a nice jangly number - although unfortunately this is the kind of classic Arcade Fire that I really never got into. "Mont of May," however, is a almost punk sounding track, insistent and almost epic/terrifying, and much more to my style, although I suppose a bit of a departure from their baroque pop past.

Radio rips courtesy of 107.7 The End. And by 'courtesy of' I mean I'm using them without permission.

Arcade Fire - MS|OS

Arcade Fire - The Suburbs

Arcade Fire - Month of May

Dont Cry, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin

Who's awesome? Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin is Awesome! I dont know how these guys do it, but some how they have crafted the perfect indie pop which somehow manages to make me happy and not annoyed at the same time. Their debut Broom, captured my heart, to borrow a really lame cliche, and while I only skimmed their 2nd EP, their newest album sounds pretty amazing!

Listen to these very new and extremely excellent songs!

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin - MS|OS

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin - Modern Mystery (Radio Rip)

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin - Cardinal Rules

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin - Sink/Let it Sway

Pin Me Down

So... Pin Me Down.

What to say. Russell Lissack (Bloc Party, fool) is an amazing guitar player, expressive and emoitional, with a great degree of technical skill yet possessing of a tempering intelligence that keeps him seemingly restrained until the appropriate moment. He has proved an expert DJ and programmer, a hard working and proficient musician with interesting ideas.

Milena Mepris is pretty hot.

I just dont know what to think. Mepris' (former lead singer of Black Moustache) voice seemed to be a fantastic contributing factor on such projects as Pin Me Down's excellent remix of "Ares," but it was pretty filtered and background, whereas on these tracks its front and center - and noticeably more, erm, nasally. I just dont know. The two tracks I have heard so far, "Cryptic" and "Time Crisis," its almost omnipresent, forgettable and annoying, until Russell's unusually muscular guitar playing edges it out of the way, and becomes immediately recognizable as the defining factor it was with Bloc Party.

Maybe its Russel's fault. While I certainly extract a great amount of joy from hearing him play guitar the same way he did with Bloc Party, maybe he needs to grow more as a guitarist to help these tracks stand out.

Or maybe he should just get back with Bloc Party.

Check out this remix, however, it does empty some of the guitar but it softens Mepris' voice and turns the track into an unoffensive eurodance track.

Pin Me Down - MS|OS

Pin Me Down - Time Crisis (Co-Pilots Turbulence Remix)

Bloc Party - Ares (Pin Me Down Remix)

Lies in Disguise - Southern Electro Superband?

Lies in Disguise is the moniker for Georgian electro producer Le Castle Vania's Dylan and Moving Units front man Blake Miller recent collaborative efforts - which have produced some truly amazing results to say the least. The electro these guys are pumping out is almost Justice-esque in intensity, although it lacks the Wagnerian theatricality that Justice has perfected. Their remix of Shinichi Osawa's "Electro411" is one of the most banger things Ive heard in a long while - but all their stuff is good.

Lies in Disguise - MS

Lies in Disguise - Meet Your Replacement

Shinichi Osawa - Electro411 (Lies in Disguise Remix)

The Toxic Avenger - Poker Face (Lies in Disguise Remix)

Miike Snow is Incredible

You know who has gotten an embarrassingly low amount of love on the Cheetah? Miike Snow. This Swedish trio has quickly become a powerhouse in the electropop scene, and "Animal," the prime cut off their eponymous debut album, has quickly become one of the most popular songs to remix through the electro blogosphere. However, for as many amazing artists have tried, I have yet to find a remix that improves on the glory that is the original. So - point for Jon, I guess? If you haven't had a chance to check out this amazing band, the cheetah implores you, do it now!

Miike Snow - MS|OS

Miike Snow - Animal (Treasure Fingers Remix)

Treasure Fingers

Treasure Fingers is awesome. Authors of one of my all time favorite dj sets ever "40 Minutes in the Champagne Room," and all around amazing producers/remixers, they just released this epic remix of Classixxx "I'll Get You." It makes me incredibly happy and hopeful for summertime. Listen!

Treasure Fingers - MS|OS

Classixxx - I'll Get You (Treasure Fingers Holy Shit Bassline Remix)

Ocelot - Our Time (Treasure Fingers)

Treasure Fingers - Cross the Dancefloor

The Most Beautiful Music Video Ever Made

This isn't new, but sometimes that doesn't matter. I just really wanted to share this with all of you.

Radiohead - Pyramid Song from Wes Dorris on Vimeo.

The National - First Video: Bloodbuzz Ohio

The National - "Bloodbuzz Ohio" (official video) from The National on Vimeo.

"Bloodbuzz Ohio" became the first song off High Violet to get music videod! Its a good choice and a cool video - if you like wistfull frontmen walking around. Which, luckily, I do!

The National - MS|OS

Devandr Banhart Is Still Pretty Crazy

Devandra Banhart has a new music video. In which he gets whipped and a bunch of other crazy stuff. Luv u Devandra.

Devandra Banhart - MS|OS

Peephole

Shit yeah. Art just turned me on to this band that apparently just played in Seattle :-(

Swing and a miss.

It's severely puzzling when something this good slips through the cracks. Peephole is a self described 'shitgaze, chillwave' band from Brooklyn - completing a beautiful little triangle of chillwave, from here in Seattle to Texas and back up to the york. But this shit's heavy. Shoegazey chillwave? A match made in heaven? Decide for yourself:

Peephole: Silence for Kindness from STARSHIP on Vimeo.

I Love This Song

I luuuv this song. Hella banger shit, its by Californian born and Australian trained rapper Snob Scrilla, and referances one of the best effing basketball teams that ever has been or will be.

Snob Scrilla - MS|OS

Snob Scrilla - Heartbreak Scorcese (96 Bulls Remix)

Teen Daze

"Fucking Canada. Seriously. Stop coming out with such awesome music all the goddamn time. You and Sweden both (FUCK you Sweden don't interrupt, stay over there, I wasn't talking to you, I'm yelling at Canada right now). You're kinda not supposed to show us up like this all the time. You already beat us at hockey, but I really don't care about hockey so I'm willing to let that slide. But this? Really???"

I probably made this plea months ago, but to no avail. Instead, they mock me. On the same day that Broken Social Scene releases a baller new album (as will The New Pornographers very soon...argh), I find out about Teen Daze, an upstart chillwave group hailing from our soon-to-be-soccer-rivals from the north, Vancouver, B.C. Their debut EP is entitled Four More Years, and from the tracks I've been able to listen to....holy shit. If you wanted the lighter, sunny G&T-drinking music to slide into the summer, this is the music for drunkenly punching summer in the balls right before jumping into Lake Union without any clothes on. The title track to the EP is the moneyball, but the whole thing is like if Keegan and I had an electro baby. I'll just call it "bangergaze." There, I said it. Now fucking rip this shit:

Teen Daze - "Four More Years"

Teen Daze - "Shine On, You Crazy White Cap"

Teen Daze - MS